U21, England is European champion: Curtis Jones decides

England wins Under21 European Championships: Spain beaten 1-0

England conquers the Under21 European Championship. The Three Lions, in fact, defeated Spain 1-0, graduating champions 39 years after the last time. Decisive for the English success were Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones, author of the winning goal, and James Trafford, who in the dying minutes after saving Abel Ruiz’s penalty kick also overcame himself on the rebound.

From the early stages of the match, Spain struggled to find rhythm in ball possession, allowing the English to control the game and immediately create two good chances with Gordon. In the 44th minute it was again the Three Lions who came close to scoring with Colwill hitting the crossbar with a header. In the final minutes of the first half England managed to find the lead with Curtis Jones unintentionally deflecting a Gordon free kick.

In the second half, the first big chance came for the Red Furies, with Abel Ruiz having a goal disallowed for offside when his header was taken off a free kick taken by Gomez. In the 65th minute, England failed to score the potential knockout blow, as goalkeeper Tenas managed to save on Curtis Jones’ finish.

In the midst of the recovery came the first blunder by the English defense, which conceded a penalty kick for a hand foul on Abel Ruiz’s conclusion. It was precisely the Braga striker who appeared from the eleven meters, but failed to beat Trafford, who, after parrying the shot from the penalty spot, also overcame on the rebound, giving England the third Under21 European Championship in its history.